Active breakfast

The concept Active Foods is the way we will all look at food in the future. The importance of healthy food, and more importantly, the benefits of a healthy and hearty breakfast to kickstart the day is the basis of these foods! Understanding the paucity of time in every business traveller’s life, we thought we would make it easier for them by putting together a healthy and active breakfast with local flavours in good measure!

What does eating mean to you Is it almost always the last thing on your mind Or is the opposite true Do you eat because it lets you take a break and unwind Or do you think of it as a chore No matter how you look at it, one fact remains inescapable — that what you eat matters.

Redefining wellness in a unique way, your meal requirements or meal experiences should focus on health. Simply put, every item in the active food segment has a high glycemic index apart from being rich in antioxidants and phytochemicals. These nutrients help break down and digest food at a rate that is slower than regular foods, helping your body absorb all the nutrients. This helps keep your energy levels constant, reduces stress levels and over time, significantly reduces the risk of heart disease. Staying healthy is as simple as eating right. We’ve only made it little easier!

The slow digestion rate of foods with a low glycemic carb content helps keep your health indicators in check. We are now demystifying wellness food and putting it within the reach of a commoner. From a multigrain croissant or a bowl of whole wheat upma or blueberry smoothie or probiotic yogurts or oat-crusted fish or multigrain rotis are hot, fresh and appealing.

In my experience, this is one of the best concepts to up the ante in dining with infusions of local and wholesome healthy food. This will be the cornerstone of the healthy eating trend in the years to come, unlike other flash in the pan concepts that disappear faster than they arrive.

The writer is the executive chef at The Gateway Hotel, Bengaluru

AMARANTH AND SWEET POTATO CUTLET Ingredients Sweet potato 500 gm (boiled and mashed) Amaranth 50 gm (blanched) Onion 2 (chopped) Green chillies 3 Ginger 5 gm (chopped) Garlic 5 gm (chopped) Turmeric powder 2 gm Coriander powder 1 tsp Chilli powder 5 gm Salt to taste Coriander leaves 10 gm Curry leaves (chopped) Amaranth (for dusting) Flour batter (for coating)

Method Heat oil, sauté ginger, garlic, onion and green chilli. Add spices, then mashed sweet potato and amaranth. Mix well, add seasoning and finish with coriander leaves. Cool mixture and divide into balls. Crust with little amaranth and pan fry or griddle on hot tawa till golden colour.

HOMEMADE MUESLI Ingredients Roll Oats 750 gm Walnuts 225 gm Almonds 180 gm Cashewnut 180 gm Melon Seeds 100 gm Sesame Seeds 30 gm Flax Seeds 30 gm Broken Wheat 75 gm Raisins 75 gm Figs 75 gm Nutralite butter 30 gm Olive Oil 50 ml Honey 125 ml

Method Spread oats in a baking tray evenly. Roast it at 190 degree centigrade for 20 minutes. Weigh all the ingredients together except honey. Mix all the Ingredients with oats. Drizzle the honey on the top and bake again at 190 degree for 18 minutes. Take it out, cool it and again mix it properly. When it is completely cool, store in boxes and use. This is weekend home work for all of you! Once the muesli is ready, you don’t have to worry about waking up late in the morning! All you have to do is mix hot or cold milk to the muesli that you have made during the weekend and have it be it at home or on your way to work!

BROKEN WHEAT UPMA WITH GREEN MOONG SPROUTS Ingredients Green moong sprouts 200 gm Broken wheat 500 gm Onion 150 gm Mustard seeds 10 gm Channa dal 10 gm Urad dal 10 gm Green chillies 25 gm Curry leaves 10 gm Coriander leaves 10 gm Oil 50 ml Salt 10 gm

Method Soak broken wheat in water for about two hours. Heat oil, add mustard seed, urad dal and channa dal, sauté and add curry leaves and chopped green chilli. Strain broken wheat, add to the tadka, mix thoroughly, add enough water and salt, stir continuously till broken wheat gets cooked. Stir in green moong sprouts. Check seasoning and finish with chopped coriander leaves.